Al-Ahli president plots transfer for 78-goal Manchester City forward | OneFootball

Saudi Arabia’s ongoing raid of European football is showing now signs of slowing, as the search from various clubs has now lead them to Manchester City.

The Saudi Pro League is currently showing significant ambition to rival the mainstream leagues in European football, investing vast amounts of cash into some of the continent’s most iconic names.

Most recently, Real Madrid striker Karim Benzema completed a shock exit from the Spanish capital to join Al Ittihad in a move that will earn him almost €200 million per season made up of his net salary, as well as commercial deals.

Chelsea midfielder N’Golo Kante is now expected to follow suit and become Benzema’s new teammate in the Gulf, taking home a €100 million per season salary, with such a figure including image rights, commercial deals, and what is being termed as a ‘creative’ portfolio.

Now, in the latest development, a new report has stated that another of the Saudi Pro League’s clubs is eyeing up the Premier League for talent, and specifically one of Kante’s former Leicester City teammates and now an Etihad Stadium superstar.

According to the information of CBS Sports’ James Benge, Al Ahli president Waleed Muaath traveled to London on Tuesday in an attempt to secure the signature of Manchester City forward Riyad Mahrez.

Across 236 appearances for Manchester City in all competitions since completing a move from the King Power Stadium in 2018, Mahrez has scored a commendable 78 goals and delivered some of the finest and most crucial moments in recent seasons.

That attempt at luring one of the Etihad Stadium’s star players follows a separate pursuit of Ilkay Gundogan, who was reportedly the subject of a €100 million proposal from Saudi Arabia this week.

Both players have played integral roles in the success of Pep Guardiola’s era thus far, although the Algeria international has a more favourable contract situation that makes any potential exit this summer more challenging.

Gundogan’s existing Etihad Stadium contract expires at the end of the ongoing season, and the Germany international is attracting widespread interest – most specifically from FC Barcelona, who have identified the 32 year-old has one of their priority targets.

Manchester City themselves are already bracing themselves for a midfield exit, as they intensify their interest in the signing of 29 year-old Chelsea and Croatia midfielder, Mateo Kovacic – having been granted permission to speak with the player and his representatives.